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“PRESS RELEASE : Resignation of Director”

“Translating Transphobia 2016-2017”

Rainbow Rights Watch is a not-for-profit social justice organisation dedicated to ending inequality, discrimination and violence against transgender Australians.

Rainbow Rights Watch has conducted ongoing monitoring and analysis of the way transgender people are portrayed and represented in the media.

As a result of this analysis, we have compiled the attached report “Translating Transphobia 2016-2017” for your consideration. The report is made up of quantitative and qualitative analyses of digital media reporting by major Australian publications who are members of the Australian Press Council over the period 2016 to 2017 including the period of the Australian Marriage Law Postal Survey.

Key findings from the report show:

a persistence of dehumanising and pejorative language in publications;

a lack of fairness and balance in reporting, especially around matters of medical best practice;

a poor representation of transgender people and experts in reporting of transgender issues; and

an ineffectiveness of editorial policies and industry self regulation to deal with these issues when raised.

Rainbow Rights Watch believes that the prevalence of misinformation and moral panic around transgender issues contributes to public prejudice and discrimination that directly affects transgender people in the following ways:

inadequate access to healthcare;

inability to find employment; and

lack of acceptance in family and society.

Rainbow rights watch is particularly concerned by the link between media portrayals and comment, community prejudice and the self harm and suicide risk highlighted in the Trans Pathways survey results in 2017.